THE PROJECT

The Mass/Cass History Project will use historical records and interviews to tell the story of a small but important Boston neighborhood from 2014 to 2024.

The area just south of the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Melnea Cass Boulevard became what some describe as a “containment zone”. It was an area where drug use and sales were more tolerated compared to other parts of the city, and an area in which many people experiencing homelessness were in shelters, or staying on the street. The formal elements of the zone were ended in the fall of 2023—but that didn’t end homelessness, or drug use, or controversies about what to do next.

When I started working in this area as a doctor in early 2015, I spent most of my time thinking about medical things: overdoses, addiction, infections. But I’ve always also been interested in the ways that big systems affect individual people’s lives. So now I’m also thinking past Atkinson Street; past Mass Ave. I’m thinking about zoning. About real estate. And the economics and politics that led to the creation of this zone, and kept it going for so long.

To tell this story I need to talk to lots of people! Maybe you were homeless, and stayed in shelters nearby, or lived on the streets in this area. Or maybe you rented or owned a home nearby; or spent time in the area in a halfway house or residential treatment program. Maybe you had a family member down here who you were worried about. Maybe you worked in the area, as a police officer, a healthcare worker, a city worker, an attorney, as a correctional officer, or in a nearby business or organization. Or maybe you were in a neighborhood or political group that was part of debates about this area. However you were part of this story, I want to talk with you.

If you were working or living on those streets you can tell the story of how policy decisions from the city and state and others had an effect on your work or your life—whether positive, negative, or no effect at all. If you were part of those policy debates and decisions, you can explain how and why the choices got made.

If you’re wondering about where I’m coming from, before you tell your story, I’m glad to talk to you about that for as long as you like. I have a point of view (here’s a long explanation)—but my biggest point of view is that, although I had a small part in this story, I didn’t really understand it. Or at least, not as well as I will, when I talk to you.

I can just about guarantee you that I will talk with people who disagree with your point of view about this story, and probably others who agree with parts and disagree with parts. And that’s why I hope you will talk to me. Without a multitude of points of views and stories, we can’t really understand the history of Mass/Cass. And until we do, other people can’t learn from it.

I’m glad to talk to you on the record, confidentially, or entirely “on background”, whatever you’re most comfortable with.